Agile in IT projects

Agile and Scrum are popular methodologies used in IT projects to improve the agility, speed, and quality of software development and project management.

Agile is an iterative approach to software development and project management. It emphasizes flexibility, collaboration, and continuous improvement. Agile was introduced as a response to the traditional waterfall methodology, which often proved too rigid for rapidly changing IT projects.

Principles of Agile

Agile is based on the following principles (from the Agile Manifesto):

Individuals and interactions over processes and tools.
Working software over comprehensive documentation.
Collaboration with the client over contract negotiations.
Responding to change over following a plan.

Benefits of Agile in IT projects

Rapid adaptation to changing requirements.
Continuous delivery of working software, often in short sprints.
Increased collaboration with stakeholders, leading to improved customer satisfaction.
Improved risk management, as feedback and adjustments are implemented regularly.
Focus on value, with an emphasis on delivering functionality that adds value immediately.

Agile way of working

In an Agile environment, short development cycles (sprints) are used, usually lasting two to four weeks. Each team starts by prioritising work in a backlog and ends each sprint with working software that is presented to the customer. After each iteration, a retrospective follows, in which the team reflects on what went well and what could be improved.

Agile vs Scrum

While Scrum is a form of Agile, there are some key differences:

Flexibility: Agile is a broad philosophy with several frameworks (such as Scrum, Kanban, Lean), while Scrum is a specific framework.
Structure: Scrum provides a stricter structure with specific roles and events, while Agile is generally more flexible in how teams organize their work.
Iterations: Scrum has fixed sprints of usually 2-4 weeks, while Agile frameworks such as Kanban can have a continuous workflow without fixed iterations.

What is Scrum?

Scrum is a specific Agile framework designed for managing and improving software development projects. Scrum divides work into manageable chunks and encourages collaboration and transparency. The Scrum framework describes specific roles, events, and artifacts.

​Agile in IT projects

​Principles of Agile​

​​Benefits of Agile in IT projects

​​Agile way of working​​

​​Agile vs Scrum

​​​What is Scrum?